How Small Businesses Are Engaging In Ecommerce [INFOGRAPHIC]

We’ve explored why businesses should get involved in social media, and today we’re going to take a closer look at ecommerce. Ecommerce generated close to $42 billion in retail sales in the third quarter of 2010, a 4% increase over the same quarter in 2009. Even though online sales are growing dramatically, small businesses are integrating ecommerce into their operations at a much slower rate.

According to the infographic below, less than half of small businesses even have a website. This grew only 12 points from 2007 to 2009. What’s the number one reason small business owners don’t have an Internet presence? You might think it’s cost or time like I did, but 41% of private business owners don’t have one because they think they don’t need one. And of those without a website, only 13% plan to create one.

The minor ecommerce presence for private business could be a result of how these smaller companies choose to use their sites. Many (80%) use their websites to simply display general information. Only 30% of companies with sites participate in online sales. Barlow Research found that businesses are more likely to participate in ecommerce when they have larger annual revenue.

Does your small business have a website? Do you use it for sales? If you don’t have website, I would strongly suggest that you create one. Chances are good that your competitors are taking clients away from you via their site.

About Lindsey Perkins Wade

The Private Business Owner – A Generational Equity Blog

The Private Business Owner is an online publication sponsored by Generational Equity. PBO aims to provide useful tips and information that will improve both the lives and businesses of entrepreneurs, as well as provide valuable insight into the company exit process through bi-weekly M&A Digests.